Breaking Waves: Ocean News

11/12/2024 - 12:37
A recent study highlights that over one-third of Vietnam's 329 mammal species are threatened with extinction.
11/12/2024 - 12:34
A new study finds that the disturbance-demanding plant species oak, hazel and yew were abundant in Europe's forests before modern humans arrived, strengthening the argument that ancient vegetation was not the shady closed-canopy forests often imagined.
11/12/2024 - 12:33
Researchers have found evidence that mangrove forests -- which protect tropical and subtropical coastlines -- are drowning in the Maldives. Their finding indicate that rising sea level and a climate phenomenon known as the Indian Ocean Dipole have led to some Maldivian islands losing over half of their mangrove cover since 2020.
11/12/2024 - 11:43
King Felipe VI reportedly plans to revisit Valencia amid alerts for heavy rain, high waves and strong winds People in flood-hit Spain stacked sandbags and braced for new storms on Tuesday as the political repercussions from last month’s deadly climate disaster rumbled on. Amid fresh weather warnings, local media reported that King Felipe VI would soon return to the site of the flash floods, after he was pelted with mud and eggs on his first visit last week owing to local fury at the poor preparation and response of the authorities. Continue reading...
11/12/2024 - 11:27
Greenpeace and Uplift say Rosebank and Jackdaw licences were granted unlawfully by former Tory government Climate campaigners have urged a Scottish court to cancel the licence to drill the UK’s largest untapped oilfield, arguing it will cause “sizeable” and unjustified damage to the planet. Greenpeace and Uplift accuse the former Conservative government of having unlawfully given the Norwegian oil giant Equinor a licence to exploit the Rosebank oilfield, which sits 80 miles (130km) north-west of Shetland and holds nearly 500m barrels of oil and gas. Continue reading...
11/12/2024 - 11:23
Keir Starmer has confirmed that the UK has committed to an 81% cut to emissions by 2035. The prime minister also said the British government was due to launch the CIF Capital Markets Mechanism, a climate finance scheme, on the London Stock Exchange to help developing countries UK has ‘huge opportunity’ to lead on green investment, Starmer says Cop29 – live updates Continue reading...
11/12/2024 - 11:16
Twenty-nine-metre tall fir destined to be chopped down and transported to St Peter’s Square in the Vatican Environmental campaigners in Italy’s northern Trentino province have started a campaign to stop the felling of a 200-year-old fir tree intended to form the centrepiece of the Vatican’s Christmas decorations. The so-called “Green Giant” is 29 metres tall and is due to be chopped down next week in a forest in the Ledro valley before being transported to the Vatican and positioned in St Peter’s Square, where it will be unveiled on 9 December. Continue reading...
11/12/2024 - 11:00
Restaurants are a major part of Asheville’s $3bn tourist economy. But no drinking water in most areas and little recovery money put staff in limbo Josiah McGaughey’s fine dining restaurant, Vivian, is still standing. Many of its neighbors in the River Arts district in Asheville, North Carolina, were leveled by Hurricane Helene’s flooding in late September. “We were graciously spared the worst of the damage,” said McGaughey, who opened the business with his wife, Shannon, in 2017. Then, it was a pop-up serving elevated cuisine on paper plates at a local brewery. During the recent storm, Vivian’s building sustained some roof damage. “We lost water and power, as did everyone else. But we also lost tens of thousands of dollars worth of product.” Continue reading...
11/12/2024 - 10:25
Environmental Protection Agency rule seeks to curb ‘super pollutant’ more potent than carbon dioxide in short term Oil and natural gas companies for the first time will have to pay a federal fee if they emit dangerous methane above certain levels under a rule being made final by the Biden administration. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule follows through on a directive from Congress included in the 2022 climate law. The new fee is intended to encourage industry to adopt best practices that reduce emissions of methane – the primary component of natural gas – and thereby avoid paying the fee. Continue reading...